Reactive feedback control and adaptation to perturbed speech timing in stressed and unstressed syllables

• Speakers are sensitive to auditorily perturbed speech timing. Response strategies depend on stress pattern and/or syllable position. Insight into timing requires consideration of multiple prosodic levels. Durational adjustments were often accompanied by changes in intensity and other suprasegmentals. This study examines speakers’ reaction focally applied temporal real-time auditory feedback perturbation a word-initial unstressed ( Unstressed condition ) similar word-medial stressed Stressed three-syllabic word. compensate locally both conditions for the syllable’s nucleus (V; compressed perturbation) but not complex onsets (CC; stretched perturbation). The first, causes global slowing down all segments following (syllable two three), while elicits local only (second) syllable. When viewed larger context, strategy indicates that speakers aim keep relative durations within word constant when onset is stretched, leading compensatory CC V word-proportional durations. In condition, increasing vowel’s duration seems be highest priority, causing take up shorter portion Adaptation effects vowel indicate durational representation segment level. Further adaptation additionally suggest timing/coordination units. Complementary investigation aperiodicity, spectral skewness, (RMS) properties can change along with compensatorily increased duration.